Four finalists named for vacant PUCO seat

One Democrat is among the four finalists for an open seat on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio that, by law, must go to a Democrat or independent.

Dan Gearino, The Columbus Dispatch

One Democrat is among the four finalists for an open seat on the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio that, by law, must go to a Democrat or independent.

The next step is for Gov. John Kasich, a Republican, to appoint one of the four, or ask the nominating commission to send him other candidates. Kasich has 30 days to make a decision.

A 12-member nominating panel selected the following finalists today: Andrew Bergman, a Columbus Democrat, employed by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency; Raymond Lorello, a Powell independent, who works for the Ohio Department of Transportation; Dan Shields, a Westerville independent, who is a federal policy specialist on the PUCO staff; and Beth Trombold, a Columbus independent, who was a longtime PUCO staff member before moving to her current post at the Ohio Development Services Agency.

Twenty-six people applied for the opening; nine were interviewed today before the panel voted to put forward the four finalists.

The new appointee will take the seat that had been occupied by Cheryl Roberto, a Democrat who resigned last month. The remaining four members consist of three Republicans and one Democrat.

The PUCO oversees electricity, natural gas and other public utilities, with broad authority to set rates.

Unless Kasich appoints Trombold, the PUCO members will be all men.

Though three of the finalists are not registered members of either party, Trombold has voted in several Republican primaries and Lorello voted in the Republican primary in 2000, according to state records. Also, Shields said he has been a registered member of both parties, most recently a Democrat, but has been unaffiliated for several years.

Lorello said he has worked as a staff member for Democrats and Republicans. He does not remember voting in the 2000 Republican primary, and says that, in general, he votes for a candidate and not a party.

State law says the five-member PUCO can have no more than three members from the same political party. In this case, party affiliation is based on the personís registration in the prior election.

The person selected will serve out the last few months of Robertoís term and then begin a normal five-year term,which would end in 2018.